Welcome to the Dads on the Air archives, with hundreds of programs dating back to 2003. You can browse by month or year, or search the entire archive for a specific topic or name. Find a show you heard a long time ago, download or stream individual programs, or just poke around by clicking “Click to read more…” next to each program for a detailed show description.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011 at 10:30AM 
With special guests:
Today we present the final show in our series on International Men’s Day (IMD) 2011 where the theme is:
Giving Boys the Best Possible Start in Life
We start out in Africa going to the home of the No 1 Ladies Detective Agency, namely Botswana, and finish up in Trinidad and Tobago via the USA.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011 at 10:30AM 
With special guests:
International Men’s Day (IMD) 2011 will be celebrated in over 50 countries around the world on 19 November and the 2011 theme is:
Giving Boys the Best Possible Start in Life
IMD interfaces with MOVEMBER and also with Universal Children’s Day on November 20 and in focussing on the main challenges boys all over the world face, asks how we can come up with local solutions to global problems.
At Dads on the Air this week we explore what IMD means to organisers in Ireland and the USA. Listeners are invited to share their own thoughts on giving the best start to boys by contacting the IMD coordination team at http://www.international-mens-day.com/ The best solution oriented approach will be awarded a prize certificate for the IMD FLAGSHIP PROJECT.
Across the sea to Ireland
Our first guest today is Mick Kenny, the Chair of Men in Childcare Ireland coordinating a celebration of IMD in Ireland. Mick has been working in childcare for 19 years, for the last 15 years in the early years sector (preschool / kindergarten) and he speaks to us from Kilkenny.
Mick is fortunate to be working in an area he loves. He is working towards his vision of seeing children feel it is normal to be cared for by both men and women.
Hear what the community gains from accessing men for this career and also the benefits to the male childcare workers themselves.
Mick’s efforts to increase the contribution of men in raising boys fits neatly with the IMD theme in 2011 and it is told with a lilting Irish accent.
The IMD Poet in the USA
Today we are honored to welcome back to Dads on the Air John D Evans who is the Illinois Regional Coordinator for IMD in the USA. John is an educator, humanitarian, folklorist, author and poet whose literary work Diary of a Renaissance Man was named Children’s Choice 2008 by the International Readers’ Association, the Children’s Book Council and 10,000 school children.
In talking to John we find out how IMD will be celebrated in the Illinois area of the USA in 2011 as well as hearing something of what was achieved in 2010. We hear about a writing competition that is open to writers around the world.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011 at 10:30AM 
Discussion of the week’s events:
With most of the team away during the school holidays, we were still able to muster a couple of stalwarts who engaged in a lively and informative discussion on the weeks events. There are many issues affecting parents and children today, that in the past were not a matter of concern or not even on the radar. However with modern technology and modern medicines, our lives have been changed considerably over the years, some things for the better while others for the worse.
How our society deals with some of these issues are the topic of discussion on today’s show, and well worth a listen if you are a modern day parent.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011 at 10:30AM 
With special guests:
Our first guest today is a Dad who has personal experience of what has become a type of epidemic in our community, namely the international abduction of children by a parent (IPCA). Ken Thompson was able to find his son Andrew and return to Australia after a three year search.
For many parents, particularly when the abducting parent goes to a non-Hague convention country there is unlikely to be any reunion.
It is estimated that at least 300 Australian children are abducted in this way every year which is an enormous toll on the community, the parents and the abducted children.
Ken brings us up to date with what is happening to help combat this practice which although being a criminal offence in the US and the UK does not appear in the Australian criminal law.
Ken gives some practical advice on what vulnerable parents should do to protect their children and also focuses attention on the upcoming Senate Inquiry.
Our second guest is David Vernon a Canberra based author who is the editor of Men at Birth. A second edition of this book was released in May 2011 and David came onto DADS ON THE AIR to discuss what he found after hearing about the birthing experiences of 23 men.
Compared to earlier generations, David Vernon believes men’s attitudes have changed:
More than ever before:
* Many men now want to be part of that moment when the baby is born – to be with their partner, sharing the creation of their new family.
* More men are attending ante-natal classes with their partner. They plan to attend the birth and are motivated to know what to expect.
* Men are usually surprised by the reality of birth – and how tough and intense it can be for their partner.
* Men realise that they do have a real role in supporting their partner – and that she is often relying on them for them to help if there is a crisis or tough decisions need to be made.
* Men are keen to know more about birth — not just the mechanics but how they can do ‘their bit’ to bring a new life into the world.
David tells us
‘It is my hope that men who read Men at Birth, by becoming familiar with birth, will be able to let go of any excessive anxiety they may have about their upcoming experience. By becoming familiar with birth they will be better prepared.’
Tuesday, June 14, 2011 at 10:30AM 
With special guests:
Our first guest this week is American Professor Miles Groth, who is full professor in the Department of Psychology at Wagner College, Staten Island, New York. He trained as a psychoanalyst in New York, where he has lectured residents in psychiatry on integrating existential analysis with traditional inpatient treatment. He has been in private practice since 1977.
Dr. Groth studied at Franklin and Marshall College and Duquesne University, and completed his PhD at Fordham University. He is the author of three books, and co-editor of Engaging College Men: Discovering What Works and Why, chapters in five books, twenty-six articles and fifty book reviews in nineteen different peer-reviewed journals. He is past editor of the International Journal of Men’s Health co-founding editor with Diederik Janssen of Thymos: Journal of Boyhood Studies.
Professor Groth will be in Australia soon to present at the Australian Institute of Male Health and Studies’ first Male Studies Symposium in Adelaide in June, at the Adelaide Convention Centre, where his topic will be ‘The Boy is Father to the Man’. As part of his presentation, he will speak about the state of the nuclear family, in particular the missing father and the effects of this on boys’ lives.
We then speak with “Tom” (not his real name for legal reasons), who tells his own story of how he was dispossessed of his children, by a legal system that he once foolishly believed to be fair and just, as it adjudicated the sensitive issues surrounding parental separation.
He made the mistake of trusting a system which has built a huge industry out of personal misery, and appears to have as its main objective the need to create the greatest amount of conflict possible, in order to fleece the greatest amount of the family wealth from warring parents.
Not taking it laying down however, “Tom” has embarked on a personal mission to warn an unsuspecting community, of the destructive practices employed by the divorce industry, and tells of the tactics he is using to expose such practices. Well worth listening to, especially for all those who are at a point where perhaps they feel there is nowhere else to go, and that there is nothing they can personally do.
Editor
Tuesday, June 7, 2011 at 10:30AM 
With interesting comment by:
When the ‘Social Inclusion’ Minister Tanya Plibersek MP spoke in Parliament last week of her disappointment at the “meowing attack” on her colleague, she followed with “As the Minister for Social Inclusion, I don’t think it’s right that half our population should feel excluded by this type of language.” All of which on the face of it sounds perfectly reasonable.
The hypocrisy of her comment however, defies logic in the face of her enthusiastic support for the sexist language of the blatantly gender divisive and bigoted, annual ‘White Ribbon’ campaign. This multi-million dollar taxpayer funded campaign, of ‘Social Exclusion’, which excludes half our population and serves to stigmatize them all as violent abusers and sexual predators, is vigorously promoted by this Minister without the slightest concern or empathy for the underlying damage it inflicts on the nation’s decent fathers, sons, brothers, male partners and families.
Without doubt, the vast majority of Australians are concerned at the level of all violence and abuse in our communities and certainly do not condone the behaviour of the perpetrators.They also fully support the obvious need to protect all of the victims.
It is therefore not surprising, that so many people vigorously object to the spectacle of hateful, openly sexist, Government sponsored, scare campaigns, which appear to be ideology driven and seem specifically designed to drive a gender divisive wedge into the debate. Most thinking Australians consider such campaigns to incite hate, social division and exclusion, rather then promote social inclusion and harmony.
The Violence and Abuse victim community and their supporters, comprising all men, women and children, now looks forward to an apology from the ‘Social Inclusion’ Minister, for her sexist language and behaviour in relation to that campaign, and hopes such gender discriminating campaigns in future take account of all the available evidence, and presents any and all such evidence in gender neutral terms.
Furthermore it is hoped that in future, misleading and selective cherry-picked advocacy research, provided by cherry-picked advocacy researchers in support of such campaigns, is better scrutinized by our elected representatives for accuracy, quality and soundness, in order to better protect the community from the subsequent damaging outcomes of bad policies.
The question must be asked what the underlying motives of this Government are, when such gender or race hate campaigns are allowed to establish such a foothold and flourish in a modern society, which claims to pride itself on being socially inclusive, multi cultural and anti-racist. Surely only a balanced and truthful approach can provide for a sound and reasoned outcome and lead to better policy development.
Of particular concern is what the confusing, double standard message of such covert hate campaign, may be sending to the nation’s young boys. On the one hand for some it could become a self fulfilling prophesy, for others it will undoubtedly create deeply felt feelings of unworthiness and lead to depressive illnesses.
Is it fair to expect our young boys to treat everyone equally, while at the same time ask them to silently accept all their fathers, brothers and themselves, being unfairly labeled as violent thugs by the opposite gender?
Does our society really wish to continue down this bigoted path, or are we intelligent enough to see the hypocrisy of such direction and demand social justice and equality for all, irrespective of race, ethnicity or gender? To teach no respect is to receive none!
Editor
Tuesday, March 1, 2011 at 10:30AM 
With special guests:
Our first guest this week is Dr Richard Fletcher, who leads the ‘Fathers and Families Research Program’ at the University of Newcastle and is the author of ‘The Dad Factor’. In the 1990’s he pioneered the study of Men’s health and Boys’ health and founded the community-based group, Fathers Against Rape, to conduct workshops with teenage boys in schools. He developed the Engaging Fathers Project at the University of Newcastle and worked to have it implemented in communities nationally.
As a lecturer in the university’s Family Action Centre, he designed and delivered courses and seminars to teachers, nurses, occupational therapists and medical students. In his PhD, he researched fathers’ attachment to infants and children. He is the convener of the national fatherhood research network. He is also the co-editor of the book ‘Boys in Schools’.
Next we speak with Dr Jonica Newby, who is a former veterinarian turned reporter / producer for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s flagship TV science program, ‘Catalyst’. While her days of trying to read the minds of furry patients are long gone, her fascination with the lives of animals remains. Before joining Catalyst, she provided the original research and concept and wrote and presented a five part feature series for ABC TV on the domestication of animals, called The Animal Attraction. She is also author of an ABC book of the same name, and a contributor to various science media across the country.
Her ABC book (formerly titled as The Pact For Survival) was recently made into a documentary feature for Britain’s Channel 4. The book has been reissued under the title The Animal Attraction to accompany the screening of the five part series.
In her follow up to ‘Fatherhood: the Male Pregnancy?’, Dr Jonica Newby presents ‘Fatherhood: Secrets of the Superdads’ and catches up with our new dads to find out how they are coping with their first year of fatherhood, as we ask the question: can science tell us what makes a good dad?
In part 1 of Fatherhood, Dr Jonica Newby followed three dads-to-be, testing their hormones and their humour - as they made the transition to fatherhood. It revealed the biological changes that turn human males into caring dads, and examined couvade syndrome - a sort of sympathetic male pregnancy.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010 at 10:30AM 
With special guests:
Maggie Hamilton
Melinda Tankard Reist
Julie Gale and
Dr Arne Rubinstein.
Following years of neglect, there finally appears to be a ripple of concern, for the wellbeing of the nations’ boys. Growing up in an era that sees their fathers portrayed as either bumbling idiots or violent abusers, it is difficult for boys to find a role model to be proud of, or a place where they are honored.
Our program this week consists of the recorded presentations made by four outstanding speakers, at a recent function held at NSW Parliament House, who dealt with the concern held by many, that we need to improve the support for the next generation of young men.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010 at 10:30AM 
With special guest:
Paul Prichard.
While one arm of Government funded research, attached to an associated bureaucracy, promotes the view of the importance of fathers in early childhood, another arm of Government funded research and associated bureaucracy, promotes a one shoe fits all anti shared parenting policy.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010 at 10:30AM 
With special guests:
Akiva Quinn and
Darren Atkinson.
In an era when fathers are treated as a disposable commodity, there are those in our community who actually care enough about the plight of Australia’s dads, to help them cope with the difficulties of trying to be a dad during this difficult period.
This historically discriminating anti Men/Father era, is also shared by our Indigenous brothers. The only difference is that the dispossession and dis-empowerment of Indigenous men, started long before the wider community turned on its own men, fathers and boys.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010 at 10:30AM 
With special guests:
Tuesday, September 7, 2010 at 10:30AM 
With special guests:
Tuesday, August 10, 2010 at 10:30AM 
With special guests:
Professor Thea Brown and
John Stapleton.
This week we have an interesting interview with Professor Thea Brown, from Monash University, who speaks about her paper “Shared parenting and parental involvement in children’s schooling following separation and divorce”.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010 at 10:30AM 
With special guests:
David Dufour and
Coral Slattery.
An interesting program this week, where we discuss just some of the many issues facing Men and Fathers in 2010. First up we speak with American film maker David Dufour, Mediadads, who recently came out to Australia, to record material for a documentary he is making, about what it means to be male in 2010. Now back in America, he speaks about the interesting experiences of his journey.
An organization of volunteers that has put an immense effort, into providing a continuous supply of updated information regarding the many ramifications of poor Family Law legislation in Australia, is the Family Law Reform Association.
We speak with the secretary of this worthy organization Coral Slattery, and discuss some of the issues facing fathers. In particular the way the education system deals with the sensitive problems facing fathers, when they attempt to obtain access to their childrens’ educational progress.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010 at 10:30AM 
With special guest:
Maggie Hamilton.
Like a breath of fresh air, it was delightful to have Maggie Hamilton, celebrated author, teacher and publisher, join us on the program this week, to speak about her latest book ‘What’s Happening To Our Boys’ .
With this new book, Maggie takes a good look into the trails and tribulations facing our boys and young men in the early part of the 21st century. As always, this well researched book is a must buy for today’s parents, who often find themselves struggling with the competing influences challenging the parenting of their sons.
Maggie leaves no stone unturned, as she delves deep into how boys and young men deal with the many issues they face in a modern technological society, while also stressing the importance of a dad or other good male role model in their lives.
Unfortunately Ken Thompson was unable to contact us to provide a scheduled update of his bicycle trip around Europe, where he is searching for his abducted son Andrew. However we look forward to hear the latest news of his experiences next week.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010 at 10:30AM 
With special guest
With an ever growing body of evidence supporting the existence and devastating effects of the Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS), we felt it necessary to again raise awareness to this debilitating disorder. Today we enjoy an informative discussion with Dr Ned Holstein MD MS, who is the founder of the prominent American family support group Fathers & Families.
The website of Fathers & Families describes the disorder in the following manner.
“Parental Alienation is a disorder that arises primarily in the context of divorce/separation and/or child-custody disputes. Its primary manifestation is the child’s campaign of denigration against a parent, a campaign that has no justification. It results from the combination of a programming (brainwashing) of a parent’s indoctrinations and the child’s own contributions to the vilification of the targeted parent. Parental Alienation is also sometimes referred to as “Parental Alienation Disorder” or “Parental Alienation Syndrome.”
“Few family law cases are as heartbreaking as those involving Parental Alienation. In PA cases, one parent has turned his or her children against the other parent, destroying the loving bonds the children and the target parent once enjoyed”.
“Fathers & Families wants to ensure that the DSM-5 Task Force is aware of the scope and severity of Parental Alienation. To this end, in December we asked our supporters to write the Task Force to urge them to consider including Parental Alienation Disorder in DSM-5. As usual, your response was overwhelming. It also helped lead to progress–while as expected the newly-released draft version does not specifically include Parental Alienation Disorder, the DSM-5 Task Force has now listed Parental Alienation Disorder among the “Conditions Proposed by Outside Sources…that are still under consideration by the work groups.”
Tuesday, January 19, 2010 at 10:30AM 
We commence the show with a hard look at some of the ludicrous anti male stories doing the rounds of the news desks this week. The fact that these blatant gender discriminatory activities are tolerated at all in our so- called enlightened society, should give great cause for alarm. The obvious psychological harm done to children growing up in the midst of a manufactured male versus female gender war, can be readily observed in the violent and disrespectful behaviour of many of todays youth.
Our first guest is author Dr Bruce Robinson whose books ‘Fathering from the Fast Lane’ and ‘Daughters and their Dads’ provide a wealth of parenting information for dads. Dr Robinson joins us to discuss the importance of a dad’s involvement in his children’s lives and the need to share their everyday experiences. Dr Robinson is also a Professor of medicine and a consultant Lung Specialist at the University of Western Australia unit at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital.
Our second guest is Sue Price of the Mens Rights Agency, regarded by many as the doyen of the fatherhood movement in Australia. The most articulate and outspoken supporter of the rights of men to be treated equally and fairly in our society, Sue speaks about the latest campaigns to raise community awareness and how to alert your elected members to the current societal persecution of men.
Tuesday, December 8, 2009 at 10:30AM 
With special guests:
Dads on the air has witnessed the slow emergence over the last two years of the album Managony by Horizon Shine. It is a collection of songs written specifically for DOTA, dealing with issues that have featured on the program relating to fathers’ experiences during and around the subject of divorce. The songs were written, recorded and produced by David “Smiley” Byrnes and DOTA’s Ian Purdie who has been a presenter on the show for the last 4 years. Today’s program features Ian Purdie and Smiley and most of the other musicians they co-opted to help create Managony, as well as the songs and some insights into their composition and the recording process. The album is available through this website for $20.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009 at 10:30AM 
With special guests:
We dedicate the whole of this weeks’ program to International Men’s Day, which is finally and deservedly starting to get more recognition and traction around the world. Warwick Marsh, from Dads4Kids who is the Global Coordinator for IMD, set the scene last week on Dads on the Air when he spoke about some of the events taking place in Australia and around the world to celebrate this important International event.
Our guests this week are from 3 different continents, representing millions of good and decent men around the globe, who currently witness themselves being publicly and relentlessly maligned on a daily basis. While there are exceptions to every rule, these should never be used to misrepresent the whole group in the way we now see men being portrayed.
We commence our International lineup of guests with Australia’s Dr Elizabeth Celi from Quality Living who is the keynote speaker at the IMD function to be held at Australia’s Parliament House in the Nation’s Capital, Canberra, on the 19th November. Dr. Celi is a strong supporter of the rights of men to be treated as an equal in a modern society, instead of having to face the daily injustices that confront them in many sectors of our community.
Next we speak with Dr. Jerome Teelucksingh from Trinidad in the West Indies, who is the founder of IMD and described the event in the following manner, “International Men’s Day is about addressing the challenges and problems that men face; improving gender relations between men and women; promoting gender equality; highlighting positive male role models – not just movie stars and athletes – but “everyday working class men who are living decent, honest lives”; and creating a safer and better world”.
We then speak with Diane A. Sears, IMD Coordinator in the USA, who puts it this way, “We must work together as a team. International Mens Day provides us with a great opportunity. Strong fathers create and sustain efficiently functioning family units which positively shape the minds and souls of our children – our future – our bridge to the future. After all, isn’ t it really about our children?”
The person responsible for Global Promotions, who is also the Historian and Coordinator for IMD is Australia’s Jason Thompson and our next guest, who would like to take this opportunity to ask individuals and organizations who are planning an event to contact him with the details at: soulgany@bigpond.com
The following guest is Frank Crump from the USA and UPI Education, who with IN SEARCH OF FATHERHOOD® have entered into a partnership in observance of International Men’s Day 2009 on Thursday, 19 November 2009. UPI Education is asking students, faculty, and administrators to observe International Men’s Day 2009 through one moment of silence beginning at 11:19 A.M. (EST) and ending at 11:20 A.M. (EST) to commemorate and contemplate the sacrifices and contributions that Men have made throughout the world. UPI Education is also soliciting essays, articles, and poems from students and adults which identify the positive male role models that have influenced their lives. These essays, articles, and poems will be published on IN SEARCH OF FATHERHOOD®’s blog.
We conclude our program interviewing one of the hardest working and passionate promoters of equality and justice for all, Uma Challa from India. Uma Challa is the IMD Coordinator for India. She made the point that, “International women’s Day is celebrated the world over every year but we also need to have a celebration every year to recognize and honor men: our fathers, brothers, partners, sons, male friends and colleagues; for the numerous services they render and the innumerable sacrifices they make to ensure the health and well-being of the family and the society.”
Tuesday, October 20, 2009 at 10:30AM 
With special guests:
Barbara C. Johnson and
Paul Stolz.
We commence this weeks’ program speaking with American lawyer and author Barbara C. Johnson who’s latest book “Behind the Black Robes: Failed Justice” which has just become available. This book addresses a serious problem, the need for court reform and the abolishment of judicial and quasi-judicial immunity. Marinated with the makings of sizzle, the book is filled with the courts’ tricks and traps for the unwary. It sets out to alert the readers both why their law cases failed and what must be done to effect court reform.
Barbara C. Johnson is an unconventional 74 year-old, who has long been a fierce advocate for fathers’ rights in family courts. She is an outspoken critic of the Massachusetts court system, which she says is rife with corruption.
Secondly we speak with Paul Stolz, who is the CEO of Victorian support group “Evolve” which provides a supportive environment for disadvantaged young people to evolve into strong, caring and purposeful individuals.
Young men in today’s society face many challenges – they are struggling educationally, emotionally and socially. Without early intervention and on-going support, many are at risk of tragic futures involving broken relationships, crime, substance abuse and even suicide.
Evolve’s Young Men’s Program is an early-intervention option for young blokes who want to work through their challenges and build a more positive future for themselves.